Hidden Depths Read online

  Table of Contents

  Legal Page

  Title Page

  Book Description

  trademarks

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Epilogue

  More from L.M. Brown

  About the Author

  Publisher

  Hidden Depths

  ISBN # 978-1-78651-693-0

  ©Copyright L.M. Brown 2018

  Cover Art by Erin Dameron-Hill ©Copyright October 2018

  Edited by Jamie D. Rose

  Pride Publishing

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Pride Publishing.

  Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Pride Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

  The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

  Published in 2018 by Pride Publishing, 535 Kings Road, London SW10 0SZ, UK

  Pride Publishing is a subsidiary of Totally Entwined Group Limited.

  Mermen & Magic

  HIDDEN DEPTHS

  L.M. Brown

  Book five in the Mermen & Magic series

  Lost beneath the ocean, Atlantis has become a myth. When it rises from the deep, everything will change for Kyle, Finn and the merpeople.

  Jake Seabrook, a human descendant of Medina, the Atlantean Goddess of Love, never asked for magical powers. Unfortunately, not only does he have them, but they are also growing stronger as more of the Atlantean gods wake from their long slumber. When Jake develops the power to hear the thoughts of anyone thinking about love, lust or sex, it is strange and embarrassing but also reveals cracks in his relationship with his mermen lovers, Kyle and Finn. If they are going to continue to live as a ménage, they will have to learn to be honest with each other. With Jake’s powers out of control and their relationship on shaky ground, the last thing any of them need is a crisis in the sunken city.

  The Atlantean gods want to regain the powers they lost when the Atlantean people were banished from the city, but the solution will leave the mer, who live there, no choice but to evacuate and search for a new home or risk exposing the existence of the mer to the world.

  Kyle and Finn return to Atlantis to help with the evacuation and ensure the safety of their families, but time is not on their side. When Atlantis rises, the consequences could tear apart their ménage forever.

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

  Ariel: Disney Enterprises Inc.

  Sebastian: Disney Enterprises Inc.

  Disney: Disney Enterprises Inc.

  Prologue

  The Isle of the Gods

  Caspian drummed his fingers on the table as he waited for Andaman to begin the meeting.

  Andaman didn’t appear to be in any hurry to do so and kept glancing at the newly awoken Tempest, Goddess of the Storm.

  “What?” Tempest asked. “Is there something on my nose?”

  Andaman coughed and lowered his gaze. “I thought you might like to chair the meeting, being that you’re the most powerful immortal among us.”

  Caspian cringed as Medina, Goddess of Love, glared down the table at Andaman. When she had awoken from her slumber, Andaman had not offered her the same courtesy.

  Tempest waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. “Let’s get on with things. I’ve far too much to do to be wasting time here.”

  Andaman coughed again and shuffled the scrolls in front of him.

  Caspian’s sister, Cari, nudged him in the arm. She grinned wickedly and nodded between the fumbling God of the Forge and the irritable Tempest. He forced a smile to his lips. Yes, he had noticed the obvious infatuation Andaman had for Tempest. It seemed his affections had only grown stronger in the centuries while Tempest had slept, along with so many other Atlantean immortals.

  The table they sat around was quite crowded compared to a few years before.

  “Caspian, Cari, pay attention!”

  Caspian startled at the reprimand from his mother. Odessa was another newly awoken goddess—and didn’t he know it. He certainly hadn’t missed her scolding over the centuries. For the first time, he wished his father, the God of War, would hurry up and wake from his stasis. At least then his mother’s attention would be focused elsewhere.

  “Well, Caspian?”

  While his mind had been wandering, it seemed the meeting had begun and Caspian had no idea what they were talking about.

  “Really, Caspian.” Odessa sighed loudly. “Aren’t you listening at all?”

  “Apparently not,” Caspian snapped. “What was the question again?”

  Andaman growled in annoyance. “I asked which of our brethren you believe will wake next. Which stirred when you visited their temples during the recent battle?”

  Caspian straightened in his seat. At least he knew the answer to the question. “My father was the nearest to rising, though several others also appeared briefly. I think we can expect the God of War to be with us in the next few months and the Goddess of the Sea may follow within the year. Despite the quakes caused by the stirring of the gods, the God of the Earth is very much in stasis.”

  Andaman scribbled notes as Caspian spoke. “Then you believe Cynbel is the only one likely to wake soon enough to assist us when Mariana returns?”

  “Yes.”

  Tempest frowned as she looked up and down the table. “Do you fools intend to wage all-out war on the Goddess of Sea Creatures?”

  “She has declared war on us,” Cari said. “I see her returning to Atlantis within the year. We need to be ready for her. We only defeated her last time thanks to the element of surprise.”

  “Who defeated her?” Tempest asked. “When I arrived, I rather got the impression you were losing until my intervention.”

  Cari sank low in her seat.

  “You’re quite right,” Andaman hurried to assure her. “We are most grateful for your timely assistance in ridding Atlantis of the goddess who would do such harm to the city and its inhabitants.”

  Tempest glared down the table. “The mer mean nothing to me. Make no mistake about that.”

  “What have the mer ever done to you?” Medina asked. “They are a peaceful, loving race, who have opened their hearts to us.”

  “They’re animals,” Tempest replied. “Humans keep pets, which show them equal affection. It doesn’t mean I want them in my home.”

  “The mer are half human,” Cari pointed out.

  “And half fish,” Tempest retorted.

  Caspian pla
ced his hand on his sister’s arm, silently urging her not to lose her temper. There were more important issues to be discussed than the physiology of the merpeople.

  “I think perhaps we should move on to the main problem we have right now,” Caspian said.

  “I thought Mariana was the problem,” Andaman replied. “Hence, why she was not invited to this meeting.”

  “She’s a problem but not the only one,” Caspian said. “Unfortunately, the departure of the goddess, along with her sea dragons, has resulted in the city of Atlantis becoming visible to all those who happen to be in the area. Shark attacks on the mer have increased tenfold since the sea dragons were freed, and there are humans navigating the nearby waters who could stumble across the city and the mer within weeks.”

  “Or even days,” Cari added. “My visions tell me those who are most persistent in searching for Atlantis are descendants of the banished Atlanteans. They won’t give up their search, because the city beckons them. It’s merely a matter of time before the location of Atlantis is revealed to the world—and with it, the mer.”

  Medina smiled brightly. “But isn’t that a good thing? If humans discover Atlantis, people will believe in us again and our powers will be increased.”

  “Good for us isn’t necessarily good for the mer,” Caspian said. “Humans today are not as understanding of other beings as they once were.”

  “Jake seems to accept the mer well enough.”

  “He does,” Caspian agreed. “As do the few others who have been privileged enough to know them, but there are far more who would see them captured and studied in scientific laboratories—or worse, killed. I don’t believe the risk is justified. The mer must remain hidden, and right now that means we need to find a way to hide Atlantis.”

  “None of us has the power to make the entire city invisible,” Andaman reminded them. “Our own individual temples, perhaps, but nothing more. Even Mariana didn’t have that power, only her sea dragons did. I think we have to resign ourselves to the fact that the mer may have to relocate if they wish to remain hidden from the world.”

  “And where do you suggest they go?” Caspian snapped. “There’s nowhere left in the oceans where such a large community can not only hide but also survive.”

  No one around the table offered any suggestions.

  “Atlantis will be discovered,” Cari said. “I’ve seen it for myself.”

  “How long do we have?” Andaman asked.

  “I don’t know, but certainly within the lifetimes of my current Oracles.”

  Caspian had no idea what to suggest. His vow to protect the mer had become a full-time occupation. He hoped he was up to the job.

  Chapter One

  Jake clicked the link on his tablet’s browser and frowned as he read the story about a group of deep sea explorers searching for the mythical city of Atlantis. He glanced at his two lovers, kissing languidly beside him. Or not so mythical. He returned to the article.

  The general feeling of the reporter was that the group of divers were wasting a lot of money that could be spent far more wisely. The writer clearly didn’t believe Atlantis had ever existed.

  What worried Jake was the location the explorers were searching in. They were far too close to the true location of the sunken city for his liking. Not that he cared if the city itself was discovered… His concern was for the merpeople who resided within its boundaries—and especially Kyle’s family.

  Kyle, the merman he had found washed up on the beach nearly three years earlier, suddenly grabbed the tablet from his hand and tossed it to the far end of the bed.

  “Hey!”

  “I can’t believe you’re sitting reading some boring news report with two naked men in your bed,” Kyle teased.

  “You have something else in mind for a Sunday morning?” Jake asked. He could tell them about Atlantis later. There was no sense in worrying them before he had to, and it wasn’t like there was anything they could do about the human divers right now.

  Kyle climbed over him, leaving room for Finn, the youngest of the trio, to move closer to Jake as well.

  Finn ran his fingers along Jake’s thigh, toying with the hem of his boxers. “I can’t believe we still haven’t cured you of this ridiculous habit of wearing clothes to bed.”

  Jake laughed. “Many humans wear even more than I do,” he pointed out.

  Finn slid his hand into the underwear, and Jake gasped as Finn grabbed his cock and squeezed it lightly. “They’re fools, and if all humans shared their beds with the mer, they’d soon be happy to spend their days naked, too.”

  Jake opened his mouth to make a smart remark but his words were halted by Kyle, who chose that moment to kiss him, swallowing his retort in the process.

  He could feel Finn battling with his boxers and he raised his hips a little so his lover could remove them. Finn didn’t waste any time once they were off. He dove on Jake’s cock, swallowing it to the root with ease.

  Jake groaned into Kyle’s kiss as Finn sucked him eagerly. He reached down blindly, finding Kyle’s stiff rod and taking it in hand. He stroked the thick length in time with Finn’s sucking on his own.

  Kyle deepened their kiss, thrusting his tongue into Jake’s mouth. Jake let him take control.

  Farther down the bed, Finn continued to use his mouth to bring Jake exquisite pleasure.

  “Fuck, how long is it until the solstice? I need that spanking so badly.”

  Jake pulled out of the kiss so quickly that Kyle accidentally bit his lip.

  “What is it?” Kyle asked as he tested his lip for blood.

  “I’m not sure,” Jake said.

  Finn pulled back, leaving Jake aching with need. “Is something wrong?”

  Jake wondered if he had imagined Finn’s voice in his head, but he had to ask to know for sure. “I thought the mer couldn’t communicate telepathically in human form.”

  “We can’t,” Kyle confirmed. “It’s one of those things I wish we could do.”

  Finn nodded. “Kyle’s right. Why do you ask?”

  “I thought I heard your voice in my head,” Jake said. “I guess it must have been my imagination. Don’t worry about it.”

  “What was I saying?” Finn asked. “Anything interesting?”

  Jake shrugged. “You wanted to know when the next solstice was.”

  Finn paled visibly.

  “What is it?” Kyle asked.

  “I was thinking about the solstice,” Finn whispered. “I…”

  “Why?” Kyle questioned. “You’re a horny devil every day of the year. Does it make any difference whether it’s the solstice?”

  Finn wouldn’t meet Kyle’s eyes and Jake knew that—somehow—he had heard Finn’s thoughts a few minutes before.

  “Finn”—Jake held out his hand and beckoned his young lover closer—“come here.”

  Kyle sat back so Finn could settle between them.

  “Did you hear what else I was thinking?” Finn asked. “About—”

  “Yes,” Jake said.

  Finn hung his head, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

  “What did he say?” Kyle asked.

  “Think,” Finn corrected. “I didn’t say anything.”

  “But you should have,” Jake said. “How can we give you what you need if you don’t tell us?”

  “It’s not the solstice,” Finn said. “I don’t need anything except then.”

  Jake wrapped his arm around Finn and tugged him into his side. “Finn, you have to talk to us.”

  “Can one of you tell me what you’re talking about?” Kyle interrupted. “You’re not making much sense right now.”

  “Finn,” Jake prompted, “for whatever reason, I heard your private thoughts. I’m not going to tell Kyle what you were thinking, but I would like for you to.”

  Finn sighed and wouldn’t meet Kyle’s eyes. “I was thinking I needed a spanking.”

  Jake hugged Finn closely, proud of him for giving voice to his desire.

 
“You mean you want that outside of the solstice?” Kyle asked.

  Finn nodded. “I don’t know why, but I’ve wanted it for a while now.”

  Jake tipped Finn’s chin so he could kiss him on the lips. “You only had to ask, baby.”

  Kyle bounded off the bed and headed for the chest where they kept their toys. When Finn had finally admitted he needed to be spanked to break his mating fever, he had also persuaded Jake to let him purchase a couple of paddles, pointing out it would make it easier on Jake’s hands, too.

  Finn pointed to the one in Kyle’s left hand. “That one.”

  Kyle put the other away and returned to the bed. “Me or Jake?” he asked.

  Jake was the one who usually gave Finn the spanking he needed on the solstice, but there had been a couple of occasions when Kyle had had the honors.

  “Jake, please,” Finn said as he eased himself out of Jake’s arms and settled himself over his lap, his arse in the air. Jake could already feel Finn’s stiff cock poking him in the leg.

  Kyle passed Jake the paddle and Finn moaned in anticipation.

  “Ready?” Jake asked.

  “I’ve been ready for months,” Finn muttered.

  “Then you should have said something months ago,” Jake replied as he brought the paddle down on Finn’s backside.

  “More,” Finn whimpered. “Harder, Jake, harder.”

  “Whatever you want, baby,” Jake said as he struck him a second time.

  Kyle ran his hand over Finn’s arse in between smacks and Finn moaned with pure need.

  “Such rosy cheeks,” Kyle whispered as Finn raised his arse to meet the paddle when it swung down for the third time. “Are you close?”

  Finn groaned. “Yes, so close. Jake, please, spank me. Please make me come.”

  Jake put the paddle aside and brought his bare hand down on Finn’s arse with one hard smack that tipped Finn over the edge. His lover howled as he spilled over Jake’s thigh and the bedsheets.